Empty property interest free loans on their way!

6th Mar 2012

Empty property interest free loans on their way!﻿! A £5m loans fund is being made available from April 2012 across Wales to help Authorities bring empty homes back into use. Merthyr Tydfil are collaborating with RCT Council on delivering loans of up to £20/£25k to owners of long term empty properties to bring them back into use. The total fund available to applicants within Merthyr Tydfil is not known at this time. The exact details are still being worked on but we have managed to find out the following (please bear in mind that this is not official yet):

- you can buy a dilapidated property that has been empty for 6 months or longer and apply for the loan straight away (so you do not have to own it for any minimum period of time),

- the loan is registered against the property and must be paid back as a lump sum at the end of the period (2 yrs if refurbished for sale or 3 yrs if refurbished for rent),

- it is likely that the loans would be targeted at specific areas but this is to be confirmed,

- the property will be inspected and the ‘needs’ of the property assesed and agreed with the landlord,

- the landlord is to obtain 2 quotes for the works required,

- if you specify that the property is to be let (and hence pay back the loan in 3 years time) but actually sell the property, the loan would be repayable from the proceeds from sale.

So, if you own a dilapidated property that is sitting empty you may wish to consider referbuishing it and then letting. However, if you are someone looking to buy a property to rent, perhaps you may wish to consider buying a dilapidated property with a view to use the loan to refurbish it (though, please remember that the loan cannot be guaranted before you actually buy the property).

If you are interested or simply wish to find out more please give me a call on 07933 499 763 to discuss the matter.